OAKLAND, CA.-Mr. McClean, Mr. Ingram, and Mr. Gray aka “The MIG Line” take the ice again as the NHL comes to its midway point of the season with some great surprises and new competitive teams.

The biggest surprise comes from the city that what happens there, stays there; the Golden Knights might change that theme. The Knights have uplifted the city after the horrible mass shooting at the start of the season. Americans have always rallied around sports and this is just another example. The Golden Knights could set the record for most victories by an expansion team with their outstanding 19-3-2 home record and 13-9-2 on the road.

The Golden Knights are doing this with a mix of veterans and rookies. They also have two goalies that are still upset with their former team.

THE VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS

Vegas and their Golden Knights are winning. The Knights have overcome the multiple injuries starting five different goaltenders. This month will be the first time starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and Goal Brother Malcolm Subban. They are both healthy and on the ice at the same time. Fleury wants to prove to his former team the Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins that he is still an All Star Goaltender, while Malcolm also wants to show his former team Boston Bruin that they too made a terrible mistake letting him go west. Malcolm has played and won more games in Vegas then in Boston (4-years) and Subban only been three and half months with the Knights.

This expansion team is like no other because of the way the Vegas executives looked at the expansion draft last year. They can allow their young stars in the minors to play every day and grow, centers Cody Glass, and Nick Suzuki along with defenseman, Erik Brannstrom are examples of this. These first rounders in Portland (Western Hockey League) are playing well while the parent club battles for the Pacific Division Title. Most expansion clubs would have thrown these kids to the wolfs. Meaning they would have to either sink or swim playing with seasoned opponents.

The Knights with Goal Brother Center Pierre-Edouard Bellemare from the Philadelphia Flyers has seven points and five goals. Bellemare and the Knights should make the playoffs this year but they will also be making NHL history with the most points by an expansion team. They will do this by beating the established hockey clubs in the west, The Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, Winnipeg Jets, and Nashville Predators.

The Vegas Golden Knights are the example of how to build an expansion team through careful drafting. The Knights could be a force in the west for many years to come if they continue picking talented players.

Forward William Karlsson continue the Knights surge with two goals over the Columbus Blue Jackets and a 5-2 Vegas victory Tuesday night as the Golden Knights win their 32nd game of the year.

THE WINNIPEG JETS

The Winnipeg Jets are battling for first place with the Nashville Predators for the Central Division as they move two points ahead of the Preds with 5-4 overtime victory over the San Jose Sharks. The Jets are on the West Coast-California trip this month and will be in Anaheim this weekend. Forward Blake Wheeler has hit his stride with 54 points and leads the club with 40 assist. The Jets are a scoring machine with forward Patrik Laine scoring 21 goals. Goal Brother defenseman Dustin Byfuglien is working overtime as he is logging in over 24 minutes a game this year bouncing opposing forwards off the boards and off the puck.

The Jets may have finally found a goaltender in Connor Hellebuyck with 27 victories and four shutouts. This might be the glue to put Winnipeg into the second and third rounds. The Jets also can count on the two headed monster with Goaltender Steve Mason from the Philadelphia Flyers if Hellebuyck fails. Mason has not played since January 9th due to concussion syndrome and might not get into the lineup until mid February because this is his second one of this season, the Jets will be very careful with Mason entering the Winnipeg nets.

THE SAN JOSE SHARKS

The San Jose Sharks finally have put it together in the Pacific Division after a very slow start. Currently they are in second place behind the upstart Vegas Golden Knights.

The Sharks are still trying to win their first Stanley Cup after winning the President’s Cup twice and losing in the Finals . The Men of Teal made a major move sending center Patrick Marleau to the Toronto Maple Leafs and letting young goalie Aaron Dell stand in net backing up stalwart Martin Jones. The Sharks might have an advantage when the playoffs arrive with two solid goaltenders and the playoff experience

Goal Brother Center Joel Ward guides the second line could be playing his last year want another shot at Lord Stanley’s Cup. This team could be putting the pieces together at the right moment.

The Sharks have the best combination of a good penalty kill unit and very skilled power play unit. The Sharks have shutdown many teams’ power play units and that has kept them in many games this year.

The big line of Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture, and Tomass Hertl with center Joe Thornton have to step up to get the Sharks to the Finals.

San Jose will have to wait at least 4-6 weeks for Thornton to return to the ice as he had orthopedic surgery on his knee.

When defenseman Brent Burns hit the ice with center Joe Thornton it looks like Robin Hood and his men have come back to San Jose with their huge beards.

The Sharks are re-tooling on the fly with young center Chris Tierney, forwards Melker Karlsson and Timo Meier. The Sharks will be challenging the Vegas Knights and fending off the Los Angeles Kings for the last few playoff spots.

THE NASHVILLE PREDATORS

The Predator fans are calling the gold and blue Smashville for the hit music in Tennessee. The Predator defense are also smashing opponents against the boards.

The Nashville Predators are now fighting for national press time with the Golden Knights and Winnipeg Jets winning. All Star Captain Defenseman Goal Brother P.K. Subban might have to drag and pull the Predators to the playoffs this year. The Western Conference like the NBA has become tougher so it has become difficult for Nashville to return to the Finals. Goaltender Pikka Rinne and P.K. Subban will play in this year’s All Star Game.

P.K. Subban will make history being the first Black player to be named captain of an All Star Team as he will head the Central Division.

The Predators can close the scoring door on any team in the league just ask the Pittsburgh Penguins and forward Sidney Crosby and they have one of the best power units with P.K. Subban at the point shooting laser shots at the goaltender.

One thing they have to fix, the team has taken too many penalties because they get lazy on defense leaning on Ellis, Subban, and Rinne backing them up. The Predators welcome defenseman Ryan Ellis back after six months with a knee injury. This should help Nashville in the defensive zone and give Subban needed relief before the playoffs start.

Love the productive scoring line of forwards Viktor Arvidsson, and Kevin Fiala with center Ryan Johnsen.

It’s going to be a wild finish in the Western Conference. This should be the final four in the west.

OAKLAND, CA.- The National Hockey League’s All Star Games passed with the showcase of emerging hockey stars in the Eastern Conference. The Atlantic and Metropolitan Divisions are now in a penguin march behind the Tampa Bay Lightning which has more wins and more goals than any team in the east. There is only one dominant team in this conference. The other organizations are packed so closely together that one victory on any night or one loss on any other night might be a ticket in or out of the post season. Just ask the New Jersey Devils who were in 8th place at the beginning of the week and are now in second place in the Metro Division. This is the way the Eastern Conference will be the rest of the year. Philadelphia, New Jersey, both New York metro teams and Carolina will fight for those wild card spots.

The Bolts are the Golden State Warriors on ice scoring from everywhere, and from every position on the rink. Tampa Bay is first in the league in scoring with forward Nikita Kucherov and center Brayton Point have 20 goals each and firebrand center Steve Stamkos could be the Draymond Green for the Bolts with his 40 assists along with Kucherov’s 37 assist. These guys know where each other is on the ice and can hit each other on the move.

Question, Where is Goal Brother J.T.Brown ? Is he being punished for raising his Black fist during the National Anthem?

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

This could be the last hurrah for the Washington Capitals as the veterans forwards T.J. Oshie, and Tom Wilson with All Star left winger Alex Ovechkin and Goal Brother Devante Smith-Pelly. At the start of this season scoring was so easy for this team in our nation’s capitol.

Number eight-Ovechkin went on a scoring tear with 30 goals at the halfway point and on the way to another 50 goal season. Is it enough to win the Stanley Cup?

The Caps do not want the Presidents Cup this year they want Lord Stanley’s Cup. The Washington Capitals have won the Presidents Cup twice but have never made it to the Finals. This year they have to beat the offensive machine in Florida or the re-surging Pittsburgh Penguins to reach the Finals.

Smith Pelly is having one of his better season with 14 points and 7 goals and playing in 46 of 50 games. He wants to end his career a winner.

Goaltender Braden Holtby is also having one of his better seasons and could get the Capitols to the finals. In the playoffs goaltending is everything and Holtby seems to fade at the end of the season and disappears during the playoffs.

Washington has to stop holding, slashing, tripping, and boarding to reach the finals, too many penalties right now and the team needs to clean up their act before moving forward.

The Capitals will host the United Arab Emirates Women’s National Hockey Team this month before the Olympics in South Korea. The NHL continues to expand into the world markets and the Washington Capitals are leading the way.

BOSTON BRUINS

The Boston Bruins will live in National Hockey League history being the first team to have a Black player on the ice. The Bruins celebrate hockey legend forward Willie O’Ree. This year will be 60 years that O’Ree broke the NHL color barrier. O’Ree made his debut for Boston in a 3-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. The Gray Leopard Cove and Soul Tree Radio salute original Goal Brother Willie O’Ree.

At the midway point of the season the Boston Bruins are on fire as they have moved up 7 spots in 4 months with 1 2/2 months to go, but they still have to catch the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Baby Bears are a brick wall and will not let teams score. Defensman and Captain Zdeno Chara is carrying the Black and Gold into the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Bruins are number one in goals against and are a brick wall and with their penalty kill and power play units are very difficult to score against. Remember defense wins championships and the Boston Bruins are well on the way this year.

The Big Bruins bang players against the boards and make them give up the puck in their offensive zones.

The Boston second line of forward Jake DeBrusk, center David Krejci, and forward Ryan Spooner bring their own part to the Bruin game and score too.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS

This is the home of the other Canadian Matrix Man Frederik Andersen, he may not be as cool as the original Matrix Man Ottawa Senator Craig Anderson but he gets the job done in the Leafs net.

At the beginning of the 2017-18 season the Leafs were the odds on favorite to win the Eastern Conference with their young stars center Auston Matthews, forwards Matt Martin and Zach Hyman. The Leafs have fallen to third place in the Atlantic Division but have righted the ship and are on a four game winning streak.

The addition of forward Patrick Marleau from the San Jose Sharks has put firepower in the Leafs front line. With his many years of playoff experience Marleau could instruct the young Leafs at crunch time.

This past week the Lightning blew out both New York teams beating the Islanders 5-0 on Wednesday night and then the next night shutting out the Rangers 4-0 Thursday night.

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS

The two time defending champion were on the ropes at the beginning of this season and had some work to do. The Pens started slowly and ended up at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division in October, November, and early December before they started playing championship hockey.

The six foot 225 pound Goal Brother RyanReaves from the Saint Louis Blues organization fits right in with this rough bunch and he is assigned to defend Malkin and Crosby on Pittsburgh offensive rushes.

Matt Murray does not have to share the goal net with Marc Andre Flurey this year. Murray has the job all to himself and is beginning to show the Pittsburgh faithful why.

The Pens have moved to the top of the Metro Division through their number one power play unit. Veteran centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have pulled the Black and Gold into this year’s playoff picture with their power play goal scoring.

The Pittsburgh Penguins remind many of the old Wayne Grezky Edmonton Oiler teams, volatile deadly offense with no defense. They are currently third last in defending their goal and this could undo their 3 peat challenge in 2018 only goaltender Murray can reverse this trend.

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS

In October everybody in the east thought the Blue Jackets would make the playoffs. They started the year 9-4 and in first place in the Atlantic Division. Columbus is the youngest team in the NHL and it is beginning to show with sloppy defensive play in the third periods. The Jackets went into a tail spin in December losing 10 of 16 falling into a Wild Card position in the east.

Goal Brother defenseman Seth Jones continues to improve on the ice as his team continues to struggle to score goals.

Blue Jack City has put forwards Cam Atkinson and Brandon Dubinsky on the same line and they are beginning to score goals again and moving back up in standings.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

The Devils are in a very strange position with the trade deadline closing in. The team is on a roller coaster, up one week down the next. The New Jersey Devil brain trust has to make decisions whether to keep the kids or trade to make the playoffs this year. It’s been five years since New Jersey has played in April, this could be the year if they keep this team together.

Goalie Cory Schneider has the spot all to himself with the ghost of All Star-Hall of Fame Goalie Martin Brodeur banished from the Prudential Center. Young gun Keith Kinkaid is waiting in the wings in net and playing well behind Schneider.

Forward Taylor Hall is the super star on this team with 50 points and 18 goals. The Devils have to find more offense from somewhere to move into the second round of the playoffs. Centers Travis Zajac and Brian Boyle have to produce goals in the second half in order to make post season

Goal Brother forward J.T. Brown moves from Tampa Bay to New Jersey. Brown moves away from the controversy of supporting Colin Kaepernick in the south and gets a new start with the New Jersey Devils.

Philadelphia Flyers

Next question can Goal Brother Wayne Simmonds and the Flyers or the Carolina Hurricane make the mad dash to the playoffs the next two months. The Flyers need goalie Brian Elliott in net for them to make the playoffs goalie Michal Neuvirth is o.k. but Elliott is just better. The only good thing currently in the City of Brotherly Love, are the Philadelphia Eagles defense and the Flyers power play.

Carolina Hurricanes

The reason why the Cains are where they are today is sloppy play in the offensive zone and committing too many penalties. Goalies Cam Ward and Scott Darling from the Chicago Blackhawks cannot not stop opponent’s power play.

Center Jordan Staal and forward Jeff Skinner cannot do it all for the black and red.

Look for the Cains to be in the trade market in the next three weeks.

This also could be a year that both the New York Rangers and New York Islanders do not make the playoffs, if that happens look for the Blueshirts to blow up the team in Madison Square Garden and the Islanders to move back to Long Island because of the lack of interest in Brooklyn.

Major League Baseball will suspend Houston Astro first baseman Yuli Gurriel five games in the 2018 season for his racial gesture in the World Series game three, but there is more to this story.

Major League Baseball took a stand against racism once again on the weekend of October 28-29 by suspending the Astro first basemen who is of Latin descent. Gurriel put his hands to his face and pulled the corners of his eyes after hitting a home run. This was in reference to Los Angeles Dodger pitcher Yu Darvish, on the mound, who is of Iranian and Japanese descent.

This was one second of a stupid act, one second of not thinking about what he was doing changed the minds of many Gurriel fans in Houston and this stupid act will make Juli miss five games next year. Baseball fans outside of Houston will not be kind to Mr. Gurriel in 2018.

Baseball, basketball, football, and hockey players are watched closely by millions and these players (minorties) have to be cognoscente of their actions on and off the field. Gurriel will find this out the hard way next season.

Sports fans are like elephants they never forget or forgive.

MLB and Robert Manfield had to deal with another racial issue in Boston this past summer when Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones heard vicious racial taunts coming from the predominant Red Soxs fans in the bleachers of Fenway Park after he made outstanding plays in the field.

Robert Manfred took actions immediately with a statement that this event does not reflect the fan base of MLB.

“There is no place in our game for the behavior or any behavior like the behavior we witnessed [Friday] night,” Manfred said. “There is no excuse or explanation that makes that type of behavior acceptable.”

He continued, “There needs to be disciplinary consequences to make clear that Major League Baseball is an institution that will not tolerate behavior of this type.”

Yu Darvish responded in a very light and warm way

Dervish’s statement reads:

No one is perfect. That includes both you and I. What he had done today isn’t right, but I believe we should put our effort into learning rather than to accuse him. If we can take something from this, that is a giant step for mankind. Since we are living in such a wonderful world, let’s stay positive and move forward instead of focusing on anger. I’m counting on everyone’s big love.

This is all well and good but there is a team in the Central Division in the state of Ohio in the city of Cleveland that needs to be addressed.

The Cleveland Indians are still wearing Chief Wahoo on the uniform shoulders and home caps. The Cleveland organization continues to drag their collective feet on the issue of retiring racial insensitive Chief Wahoo. The Merry go around continues.

With the Gurriel pending suspension and the Adam Jones summer racial incident it may be time to take that step forward and demand that the Cleveland Indian Baseball Club remove Chief Wahoo from their uniforms.

Cleveland baseball fans continue to cling to their tradition and claim that they are honoring or paying homage to Native Americans. This is the same claim that the Washington Football Club fan base puts forth. Remember slavery and Jim Crow Laws were tradition too.

If MLB and Robert Manfred really want to stop racism in their sport prevent the Cleveland Indian Baseball Club from using Chief Wahoo next season. The time is right.

If Manfred and MLB really want to send a message to all the players and the baseball fans and in the process stop racial incidents like Adam Jones or Yuli Gurriel. Tell Cleveland to retire Chief Wahoo.

That Little Red Sambo is not welcome and neither are the acts of the Boston Red Sox fans or Yuli Gurriel.

MLB should not encourage white males to dress up in red face paint bringing signs that read scalp them. This too is not respectful. MLB has the chance to change history.

OAKLAND, CA (www.basnnewsroom.com) Mr. McClean, Mr. Ingram and Mr. Gray aka “The MIG Line” take the ice one more time with the rest of the Western Conference. We will take you through the 2017-18 season with our news and views from Centre Ice to center stage…

The following teams will muck and grind for the Western Conference title this spring of ’18. There is not a dominate team in the west but the conference is a much stronger as a whole than the East where the Pittsburgh Penguins rule and have won the Cup the last two years.

Before we start in the west we must address the racial/political issue of sports protest. The Tampa Bay Lightning forward T. J. Brown continues his silent protest on Sunday October 15. Brown raised his fist as the American anthem was played with head bowed. Brown had received death threats for his actions.. Brown stated he wanted to do something in support of his fellow football players.

The political, racial, and social nonsense continues in the United States. What the owners are saying to their African American/Black players in all sports “Just shut up and play, I’m paying you. The fans are complaining/whining that they do not want politics in their game. That horse left the barn in 1936 in Berlin, Germany at the Summer Games. Ever hear of Jessie Owens? Americans wanted politics in sports then, Right? So why is it different now?

GOLDEN KNIGHTS

Many things have happened to this club and it’s not even the end of October yet. The Golden Knights were the emotional rock for the city of Las Vegas after the mass shooting incident on October 1.

The Golden Knights are now Vegas Strong and won the opening home game with gritty play and strong defense against the Arizona Coyotes 5-2. The Knights paid tribute to the cities first responders and then went out and rewarded their fan base with a victory. The surprise is that they keep on winning.

Veteran goalie Marc Andre Fleury stopped 31 shots and Tomas Nosek started the party two and half minutes into the game with a score with an assist from Goal Brother Pierre Edouard Bellemare. Deryk Engelland hometown hero scored the second goal and the party was on.

Fleury went down with a injury and Goal Brother Malcolm Subban stepped in and took over in net and beat his former team the Boston Bruins 3-1 and defeating the Buffalo Sabers 5-4 in overtime.

The question can they keep this up all year long. They have already passed the records of expansion teams winning percentage the first month with a 5-0-1 record.

Yes, the Golden Knights are Vegas Strong

STARS

The team that moved from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota to Dallas Texas in 1994 are still trying to find a permanent home. They are currently in the Central Division after being in the Pacific Division for many years. The league wanted to cut down on traveling time and many west coast teams complained that they did not like going to Texas during the playoffs season.

The Twin cities now belong to the Minnesota Wild.

The Stars now have two veteran goalies in Ben Bishop and Kari Lehtonen and the question is who will be number one in the nets or are they going to use the two headed monster. Right now Ben Bishop will make his fourth straight start with 2-1-0 record.

Goal Brother center Gemel Smith should spark the Stars offense if he can get in the lineup. The 5’10” 190 pounder will make the Stars a threat up the middle but Smith has been a healthy scratch the past six games.

Center Jason Spezza will have to carry the men in green this year, too much for one player.

Do not expect this team to go above 500. Not enough offense to beat the classy teams of the Western conference.

AVALANCHE

Still wondering how they acquired Jonathan Bernier from the Anaheim Ducks? The veteran goalie will help Semyon Varlamov get the needed rest. This should help Colorado but they need better defensemen. Not impressed with Nikita Zadorov and Tyson Barrie helping their goaltender. They need a P.K. Subban clone to make the playoffs this year.

Center Tyson Jost is the future for the Colorado Avalanche but he has to have help from right wing-Colin Wilson and left wing-Carl Soderberg

COYOTES

Older fans are still questioning the placement of this team in the Southwest in 1996-97. This team over-used the home team “white out” in critical games driving the opposition crazy with the white ice, white jersey, and crowd wearing white clothes made it tough to play in Phoenix. It finally induced the league to finally change the rules. Home teams now wear their colorful uniforms at home and the white uniform on the road.

After the first few weeks of this season they look worst than they did last year Goalie Antti Raanta is currently on the disabled list forcing the young Adin Hill to start in net.

The Derek Stepan, Max Domi, and Clayton Keller line is going backwards with -15 rating and only 12 points.. That will not get it done for Coyotes.

Center Brad Richardson also has to show up on the ice

Goal Brother forward Anthony Duclair signed a 1 year free agent contract after a good year in the desert last year with 20 goals and 20 assist. Still upset the New York Rangers let him go two years ago, the Blueshirts are now paying for it being in last place in the Metropolitan Division.

CANUCKS

The Vancouver Canucks could be looking at the Pacific Division basement as their defense continues to crumble.

They have two unknown goaltenders Jacob Markstrom and Anders Nilsson that will be thrown into the fire in 2017-18.

The Sedin Brothers (Henrik and Daniel) are one year older, a bit slower, and another year wiser but opponent’s forwards are flying by them to score.

Left wing Derek Dorsett passed his 500 career game and right wing Thomas Vanek passed his 700 point another Sutter, Brandon became the sixth member of the family to reach 600 games. In other words this team is old and may need to start rebuilding for the next decade.

Do not expect this team to reach 500 too many problems.

Right wing Markus Granlund and left winger Loui Eriksson are the bright new stars for Vancouver.

END OF FIRST SERIES

Count on The MIG Line (McClean, Ingram, Gray) to score throughout the 2017 – 18 season for The BASN Assassins!

OAKLAND, CA. (http://www.basnnewsroom.com): Mr. McClean, Mr. Ingram, and Mr. Gray, “The MIG Line” takes the ice again with the rest of the eastern conference. We will take you through the 2017-18 season with our hockey insights.

The following teams in the Eastern Conference will struggle to make the playoffs in the spring of 2018. Just like the weak Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The current power teams in the NHL are in the west. The Pittsburgh Penguins like the Cleveland Cavaliers rule the eastern conference and will most likely should repeat this year.

DEVILS

The New Jersey Devils were at the bottom of the division at the end of the 2016-17 season. They have nowhere else to go but up. They started this season on the right foot winning their first three games against Buffalo, Colorado, and Toronto reversing the New Jersey tradition of starting slow.

The new motto for 2017 is Red Dawn Raising… we shall see.

Goaltender Cory Schneider will not be looking over his shoulder worrying about the ghost of goalies past, Hall of Fame New Jersey Goaltender Martin Brodeur, number 30 retired in the 2015 season wearing a St. Louis Blues uniform.

The Devils have also put aside the left wing lock defense system and have moved forward with a straight defense.

Left wing Brian Gibbons maybe finally finding his way around the Newark ice rink, scoring his first goal of the year against Maple Leafs.

New Jersey may be hurting currently at right wing with Drew Stafford and Kyle Palmieri out of the line up with a low body injury at the beginning of the season.

The administration committed to not signing veteran rental players to fill the void this year. So the Devils are going to have to do it on their own with their own players.

Get that shuttle bus to Binghamton (AHL) warmed up.

Looking for right wing Jimmy Hayes, center Adam Henrique, and Taylor Hall to step up their game in 2017. Centers Pavel Zacha and Nico Hischier have not scored yet but if Jersey is going to move they have to put the bisket in the basket.

The Devils goal this year should be making a wild card spot.

JACKETS

The Columbus Blue Jackets are in a do or die year. This coach is on the hot seat if they don’t reach the quarter finals. We could be seeing a head coaching change early if Jackets get off to a slow start. Last year they made the playoffs and are expected to be better this year. Goal Brother defenseman Seth Jones started the season with two goals and he has resigned with the Jackets for six years. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky will have to carry the load in net this year with young Joonas Korpisalo as a backup.

New Jack City will have to find a scoring line to stay in the playoffs left wing Pierre Luc Dubois-center Brandon Dudinsky and right wing Cam Atkinson could be that line.

There is work to do in Columbus, Ohio.

HURRICANES

The Carolina Hurricanes are once again in the rebuilding mood. Goaltender Cam Ward finally now has a viable backup with veteran Scott Darling from the Chicago Blackhawks. Carolina must find defensemen to protect them.

The Hurricanes scoring power is up middle with their centers Jordan Staal, Victor Rask, and Derek Ryan.

Not looking for much out of this team this year.

RED WINGS

The Big Red Machine has struggled the past four years but it seems like they are currently moving in the right direction.

The Detroit Red Wings organization could be finally putting together a new team. This team missed the playoffs again last year but the team effort is beginning to show benefits, with scrappy rookie right winger Martin Frk and defenseman Nick Jensen.

Veterans center Henrik Zetterberg and defenseman Travor Daley will be leaned on hard because of their experience.

Goaltender Jimmy Howard might be at the end of the road. Howard has seen the good, bad, and ugly in Detroit. He needs a solid backup and Petr Mrazek is not the one.

SENATORS

If you are a Sens fan it could be frustrating because they have so much potential and continue to stumble in the first round of playoffs. Defenseman Goal Brother David Johnny Oduya wants to end his career a Stanley Cup run. Can he do it north of the boarder? At least Oduya is wearing the right colors red, black, and white .

Mr. Anderson, the Matrix Man has aged, Goalie Craig Anderson finally will get help with veteran Mike Condon from Pittsburgh Penguins in net. Anderson missed games the past two years due to family matters and injuries, the Sens hope he can complete this season. Condon scored 5 shutouts last season and should help Ottawa and Anderson.

The Florida Panthers may have changed their logo but it’s the same old team. The past five years this team has not made improvements or the playoffs. It seems like they are in a block of ice and can’t get out. Maybe it’s the warm weather and the scenery at the beach distracted this team.

The 1993-94 entry had to wait until the 1996 playoffs season to make Miami notice. The Panthers won their first playoffs, upsetting the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. In the Finals the Colorado Avalanche stopped the Panther train in four games ending the surprising ride.

The league also had to pass new rules in regards to fans throwing objects on the ice. In the home opener of the 95-96 season a rat flew across the locker room floor Scott Mellanby one time the rat against the wall, killing it. That night Mellanby scored two goals and goalie John Vanbiesbrouck yelled “rat trick” it grew from there. Panther fans started throwing rubber rats on the ice after a player scored a goal.

It got out of hand the next year when Florida fans bombed opposing goalies with hundreds of rubber rats. The league would assist a penalty if fans continued.

Veteran goaltender Roberto Luongo may have found a home in South Beach after stints in Long Island, New York and Vancouver, B.C. This is his fourth year in South Beach and it might be his best. He has become the elder statesmen and it might be time for the Panthers to seek a new man in net.

This team is in trouble when they are depending on right wing- Radim Vrbata and Jared McCann, center Vincent Trocheck and left wing Jamie McGinn.

The Panthers still need a sniper to jump start their offense.

BRUINS

The Hub fan base could be crying all year. The Boston Bruins might be on the outside looking in April.

The bigger stronger Ottawa Senators put them out of the playoffs last year 4 games to 2 in the first round. The Sens pounded the boards the whole series and the Bruins had no answer.

Boston goaltender- Tuukksa Rask will not have decent backup this year and this might cost them at the end of the season. Last year the Bruins offense went through scoring woes in the middle of the year and it cost them against the Senators they have not fixed that problem.

The Black and Gold might not make the playoffs this year if they don’t find a scorer and a player to replace defenseman Zdeno Chara. Could that be young centers David Krejci and Riley Nash the new leaders of the baby bears. Cannot forget Center Patrice Bergeron who gets under opponents skin with his gritty place on the ice.

END OF PART III

Count on The MIG Line (McClean, Ingram, Gray) to score throughout the 2017 – 18 season for The BASN Assassins!

These are the following nine reason African Americans are still slaves in the United States, yet some people say ALL LIVES MATTER. If that were true, everybody would be working to change the criminal justice system. This justice system only reinforces institutional racism: propping up white supremacy.

Black people are imprisoned in exceptionally high numbers.

People should be asking how 12.5 percent of America’s population can be 54 percent of America’s prison population. That is 2.3 million BLACK people.

The numbers exploded during President Richard Nixon’s War on Drugs but what the American media will never tell you, is how those drugs came into America.

NOW THINK REALLY HARD. How many African Americans owned a boat or a plane in 1970’s?

Black people are more likely to be arrested for nonviolent offenses.

Question, how many white individuals get arrested for Jay-walking, DWB, Driving While Black, selling loose cigarettes on the streets, or walking in the middle of the street? Black people are 3.2% more likely to be arrested for possession of marijuana than their white peers, even though blacks and whites use the drug at similar rates.

The wheel of justice turns very fast for Blacks but slowly for whites when it comes to penalties for crack cocaine vs. powder cocaine. African Americans receive a five year sentence for crack cocaine while suburban Caucasians get five months or less for powder cocaine. This is the American justice system.

New Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions appears to be seeking a return to higher incarceration rates. Will this really MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN?

Black people are more likely to be sentenced to death for crimes against white people.

White citizens who kill Black people receive lesser sentences at trial (life in prison) than when African Americans take a white life (death row).

The death penalty was reinstated in 1976: 80% of people who have been executed have been put to death for crimes against white people. Again, the news media will never inform the American public about this fact. Blacks and whites are likely to be murder victims at roughly equal rates.

Black people are less likely to be judged by a jury of their peers in criminal trials.

All- white-juries are commonplace in the American court system, but it is rarely seen an all-Black-jury at a criminal trial. Is this equality under the law for African Americans? The law states you shall be judged by your peers. African Americans never get this opportunity. Government studies have found that racism is common in jury selection.

Black children are more likely to be disciplined in school than their white peers.

African American children are sometimes physically assaulted and are assessed harsher punishment by school authorities when that child breaks any rule.

Black children are suspended and expelled from school twice as much as their white counterparts for the same offense.

This begins the school-to-prison pipeline which starts at preschool. The path to incarceration begins.

YET ALL LIVES MATTER

Each day, 500,000 people fill America’s jails awaiting trial because they are too poor to afford bail.

Americans technically are innocent until proven guilty, but if you are poor that can be a problem, because they are sent to jail until their trial date because they do not have the funds for bail. The Vera Institute found that 50% of people awaiting trial couldn’t afford bail of $2,500 or less.

Even Black men who do not have criminal records are less likely to be hired for jobs than white men who’ve been convicted of felonies.

Discrimination runs rampant in the job market. NBC News reported in 2015 that if the applicant had an African sounding name he/she did not get a second interview but white individuals with European names received phone calls after the first interview. This was also true with apartment hunting in major cities.

Key findings include:

Both Black and Hispanic men were less likely to receive a positive response from employers—including a call back or email for an interview or a job offer—compared with white men.

Men with criminal records were more likely than women with criminal records to receive a negative response from employers.

White men with a criminal record had more positive responses than Black men with no criminal record.

Black Disabled Americans are literally the last hired and the first fired.

The Disabled Revolution of the 1970s favored most white disabled community and left African American disabled folk behind. Many leaders of the movement stated that they modeled their revolution after the Civil Rights Movement, but they forgot one thing: BLACK PEOPLE. America’s Black disabled had to play the game of catching up in the 1980s. African American disabled women fared much better then disabled Black males.

Mental health assistance is not as available in the African American communities as it is in the white communities.

The recent murder on Easter Sunday of 75-year-old Mr. Robert Godwin in Cleveland by a distraught African American, Steve Stevens and who later suicide in Erie, Pennsylvania just magnifies this problem of mental health in the Black communities.

PART II

REMEMBER ALL LIVES MATTER

In World War I and World War II, African-Americans were sent overseas to defend our nation. They all went there, abled and willing to fight against fascism.

These young men were fighting for freedom in a foreign land and when they came home to America they did not have that same freedom. Under the Red, White, and Blue these veterans returned to be second class citizens AGAIN…

Shannon Sharp explains why Colin Kaepernick is protesting, kneeling for the National Anthem.

Mr. Sharp makes it clear why Kaepernick is taking that knee.

Mr. Sharp states, Some Americans insist that Black Lives Don’t Matter but All Lives Do…Now think about these Black men who go to Germany to fight for people who they have nothing in common with and gain their freedom, only to return home and sit in the back of the bus for 15 more years. DOES THIS MATTER?

Black men are being killed, beat up, shot, and arrested for noncompliance, when white criminals who stab, kill, and rape get tased, pepper sprayed, and handcuffed. In other words they live to tell the story. DOES THIS MATTER?

Another young white male travels miles and miles then walks into a church in South Carolina and joins their prayer group. He stands up and shots nine members to death, premeditated. The arresting officers take this young man to Burger King because he is hungry…BLACK LIVES DON’T MATTER…

Noncompliance to a Black man is a death sentence.

Mr. Sharp continues: If I don’t tell you my Religion, If I don’t tell you my political affiliation, If I don’t tell you my mom’s name, The one thing that I’ve been for 48 years is Black and that’s what America sees.

Americans don’t see my religion, they don’t see my orientation, they don’t grasp my political affiliation, but they see the Black skin.

This is what upsets many African Americans: the double standard that permeates the country.

In 2008 President Barack Obama tried to invite the United States into a bi-racial community, a multi-racial family. It did not happen and President Donald J. Trump is currently pushing in the opposite direction, creating a clear racial division among Americans. The forces of white supremacy would not let President Obama succeed.

Slavery is still here under a new name, and new political, social, and economic face. This country lacks a moral compass when it comes to the issue of race.

This is a sad commentary on the United States of America.

Special Thanks to Jamilah King-Sr. Editor of MicDaily

The Justice Center-The Council of State Governments

Arizona State University

Shannon Sharp

Gary Norris Gray – Writer, Author, Historian. Gibbs Magazine-Oakland, California and New England Informer- Boston Mass. THE GRAYLINE:- The Analects of A Black Disabled Man, The Gray Leopard Cove, Soul Tree Radio In The Raw, and The Batchelor Pad Network, Disabled Community Activist. Email at garyngray@blackathlete.com

OAKLAND, CA – African Americans have come a very long way in the National Basketball Association. In 1950, the first wave, Charles Henry Cooper-Boston Celtics, Nat “Sweetwater Clifton-New York Knicks, and Earl Lloyd-Washington Capitols, arrived. Lloyd became the first African American player to win a NBA Championship and the first to be an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons in 1968 and the second Black head coach in the league.

The past three years the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors have dominated the NBA landscape with the Dubs – Golden State beating the Cavs two of the last three championship series. Head Coach Tyronn Lue won the NBA title two years ago breaking the Black coaching drought of seven years.

African Americans were banned from the game until 1950.

RUSSELL

All-Star, and Hall of Fame, Center, Bill Russell the first African American head coach to win a championship. He took over the Boston Celtics in November of 1966, as a player-coach. Russell guided the Boston Celtic to another championship in 1968-1969. Russell retired in Seattle with the SuperSonics in 1988.

Note there are currently NINE Black head coaches as we begin the 2017 season in a league that is dominated by Black players.This year two young coaches will also direct their teams into their second season. DAVID FIZDALE- Memphis Grizzlies and EARL WATSON- Phoenix Suns will try to get their struggling teams to the playoffs. One veteran coach Nate McMillan will travel from the west coast to the east, from the Portland Trailblazers to the Indiana Pacers trying to mold the blue and gold into the flyboys on the court of Indiana.

Brown

Questions still remain with Mike Brown assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors guiding the team to an undefeated playoff record while head coach Steve Kerr rested in Oakland with his back injury in 2017. Mark Jackson is currently working in the broadcast booth in 2017, and Mike Woodson, is currently an assistant coach with the struggling Los Angeles Clippers. Will these three men get another chance to take a team to the playoffs and a NBA Championship?